Cruising is the latest holiday hype, and rightfully so! There are so many places and things to see. But should you embark on a huge sea cruise, a 200 passenger river cruise or a cosy barge cruise with family/friends? Let’s see what you can expect on a family run barge cruise in France…
the cradle of Champagne.
On the slopes of the Reims mountains in the Marne valley, just above the vineyards and below the forest, lies the small village of Hautvillers. It would have been just one of the many villages in the Champagne region, were it not for it’s abbey and the man that lived there from 1668 till 1715: Dom Perignon…
more bubbles…
Once you discover champagne, there is no turning back. This is part 2 of our story, the story of 2 Belgians that bought a ship, started cruising the champagne area and fell in love with it. As I told you in part 1: “Discovering Champagne”, we already learned that champagne is not just bubbles served at festive occasions, it can also be paired with food. Off we went into an exiting exploration of this heavenly drink…
US Marines memorial.
During our Champagne cruises, especially with American visitors, we include an excursion to the Belleau Wood memorial site. The small village of Belleau is best known for the battle that was fought here in june 1918. This battle effectively stopped the German advance during the 2nd battle of the Marne. It was also…
a bubbly story.
It’s not only about the magic bubbles or the different grapes this nectar is made of. It is also not in particular about the tying of the vines or the terroir they grow on. It’s our story, the story of 2 Belgians that bought a ship, started cruising the champagne area…
Greetings from Kris & Patsie.
We hope you are doing well and enjoyed your stay on board Johanna as much as we like living on our little barge.
It’s been a long and hot but interesting summer this year. We cruised from early April till late September. Now we’re happy to be back in our hometown Bruges, offering B&B on the canal.
We started a blog on our website. Patsie will share recipes and we will feature our excursions, champagne facts and add historical hightlights of our region.
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and good health.
On our way back to Bruges.
The wine harvest in Champagne is over. Our last guests have gone back home. Autumn has arrived with the first rainy days… Time to return home with Barge Johanna to our home port of Bruges. Yesterday, we passed the very winding “Boucles de la Marne” between…
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